One Health
One Health (OH) is an integrated, unifying approach that aims to sustainably balance and optimize the health of people, animals and ecosystems. It recognizes the health of humans, domestic and wild animals, plants and the wider environment (including ecosystems) are closely linked and interdependent (One Health High Level Panel, One Health definition, 2021).
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Emergency Centre for Transboundary Animal Diseases (ECTAD) assists countries and regions to implement the One Health approach by building One Health operational capacity to prevent, detect and respond to high-impact diseases including zoonoses and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in livestock. This includes support for the establishment of multisectoral coordination and information sharing platforms, One Health strategy formulation, institutional and multidisciplinary workforce capacity to tackle animal and public health emergencies and improving collaboration and coordination mechanisms among multisectoral stakeholders. In so doing, ECTAD supports the implementation of the global One Health frameworks, the FAO's One Health Priority Programme Area (OH PPA) and the Quadripartite One Health Joint Plan of Action (OH JPA).
Through ECTAD’s support, FAO has been able to manage and coordinate one of the largest animal health and One Health programmes in the world, supporting the most vulnerable and economically challenged Member Nations to improve their capacities to implement disease control programmes. This support contributes to eliminating poverty, enhancing food safety and security, and protecting global health. Thanks to ECTAD, FAO remains one of the most important contributors to global health security.
Zoonoses
Zoonotic diseases, or zoonoses, are diseases shared between animals – including livestock, wildlife, and pets – and people. These diseases pose significant risks to both animal and human health and may have far-reaching impacts on economies and livelihoods. Zoonotic diseases are commonly spread at the human-animal-environment interface – where people and animals interact with each other in their shared environment. Because of this complex interaction, addressing zoonotic diseases requires collaboration across multiple sectors and disciplines responsible for health. This coordinated approach is essential for the prevention, detection, and response to zoonoses, which are currently the source of 60 percent of all human infectious diseases. Through ECTAD, FAO supports countries to reduce the risk of emergence and spread of priority zoonoses such as highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), rabies, and anthrax through a One Health approach.
Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR)
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR), often referred to as ‘silent pandemic’, is acknowledged as one of the major global health challenges facing the world this century, posing a major global threat to humans, animals, plants, and the environment. Reducing the need for antimicrobials and limiting the emergence of resistant pathogens is critical to maintaining the world's ability to treat human, animal and plant diseases, reduce food safety and security risks and protect the environment. As AMR has multiple drivers and needs to be tackled on many fronts, a One Health approach is essential to ensure that all sectors and stakeholders communicate and work effectively together. FAO ECTAD supports countries to reduce the risk of emergence and spread of AMR through the responsible use of antimicrobials in animal production systems.
Transboundary animal diseases (TADs)
Transboundary animal diseases (TADs) are highly contagious or transmissible, epidemic diseases, with the potential to spread rapidly across the globe and to cause substantial socioeconomic consequences. TADs can threaten the global food supply, reduce the availability of non-food animal products, and cause the loss of human productivity or life. ECTAD plans and delivers FAO animal health emergency and development programmes to more than 45 countries to prevent and mitigate the impact of animal diseases using a One Health approach through its multidisciplinary global network.